N-deal may go to Senate only next week

Washington, Sep 26 (IANS) The India-US civil nuclear deal is likely to come up for approval before the Senate only next week after its consideration by the House of Representatives Friday, the Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has indicated.The Senate is likely to continue working on an array of legislation next week, delaying its target recess Friday, as the Congress grapples with the Bush administration’s $700 billion Wall Street bailout plan to rescue the US financial system from its worst crisis in decades.

“It appears quite evident that we are going to be in session next week. There are a lot of things that haven’t been done and I will mention just a couple of them,” Democrat Reid said naming the India deal among them.

“We have the Indian Nuclear Agreement,” he said noting he had a “number of conversations on this issue”, with Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and President George W. Bush. “We have a number of other bills… that we have to find cloture, before we leave here.”

Reid also indicated that the only recorded vote that is going to come up in the Senate Friday is on the Continuing Resolution, which has already cleared the House.

“I think it’s fair to say that we’re making progress - I think it’s very fair to say that,” Reid said about the negotiations with the administration on the rescue plan. “We’re going to get this done, and stay in session as long as it takes to get it done.”

Reid said that he expects to work on the package “all day tomorrow” and said it could be voted on “Sunday or Monday, without any question.”